Chapter 17 - 17 14 Embroidered Brocade Pavilion

17: Chapter 14 Embroidered Brocade Pavilion 17: Chapter 14 Embroidered Brocade Pavilion “Yan Nian, listen to me, just now Divine Doctor Zhang has already pointed out to me another Divine Doctor who can bring the dead back to life. As long as I plead for her help, my little sister will certainly be alright,” Qing Dai cried her eyes out, her makeup mixing with her tears and streaming down her face in streaks, desperately clutching onto the middle-aged woman’s sleeve, “Yan Nian, as long as you give me the chance to seek out the Divine Doctor, I promise, I promise to go with Brother Zhang.” Yan Nian indeed stopped in her tracks, glanced at Qing Dai, and then immediately said, “Regardless of whether Zi Xu is alive or dead, after you seek out the Divine Doctor, you must follow my arrangement.” “I promise, I promise,” Qing Dai, afraid that Yan Nian would go back on her word, eagerly nodded again and again. Ran Yan suddenly remembered, that Divine Doctor Zhang was the doctor she had seen the previous day at the Zhou family estate. From what Qing Dai said, it seemed likely that the “Divine Doctor” Divine Doctor Zhang referred to was her. No matter how open-minded the Tang Dynasty was, it never looked good for a noble daughter to deal with prostitutes. But Ran Yan could no longer care about that now—she needed to survive and wouldn’t let others manipulate her. With this goal in mind, after instructing Wan Lu not to show her face, Ran Yan gritted her teeth and stepped out from the dark alley. The group didn’t expect someone to be eavesdropping, their expressions turning stern. Yan Nian gave the Han men a signal with her eyes, telling them not to make any rash moves. After all, this wasn’t a chaotic time where one could injure or kill others indiscriminately. Ran Yan knew this, which is why she dared to barge out directly. “I can save her,” Ran Yan turned to face Qing Dai and Yan Nian, her gaze lingering on Yan Nian’s face for a moment, “Not only can I save her, but I can save you too.” Everyone was stunned. A woman had suddenly burst out from a dark alley, uttering such words out of the blue. “Have you recently noticed the sudden appearance of abnormal growths in your private area, pain during excretion, and sometimes accompanied by bleeding?” Ran Yan spoke calmly and composedly, without any hesitation, making several prostitutes who had experienced the vicissitudes of life blush with shame. Yan Nian’s heavily made-up face slightly changed color, her eyes filled with astonishment because the symptoms Ran Yan had just described had indeed occurred to her. She had seen the brothel’s regular doctor, taken medicine, but the condition had not improved. “Do you know Divine Doctor Zhang?” Qing Dai tentatively guessed Ran Yan’s identity but felt it couldn’t be such a coincidence. “I’ve met him once,” Ran Yan said, confirming Qing Dai’s suspicion. Qing Dai was taken aback, then suddenly fell to her knees before Ran Yan, tears streaming down her face again, “Heaven have mercy! My sister’s fate is not yet sealed! I beg the Divine Doctor to save her, no matter the cost, Qing Dai will spare no expense.” “If you’re willing to let me treat her, I naturally will not refuse. The fee is twenty taels of silver, half before the diagnosis, half after the recovery, no bargaining,” Ran Yan said, walking straight to the stretcher, lifting the thin covering, and revealing a face covered in red rashes, dense and shocking. Some of the bumps had already festered and pus was oozing out, causing even the bearers to feel wary, their hands trembling slightly, accidentally jolting the stretcher. Ran Yan appeared unfazed as she carefully examined the woman’s condition. And judging from her features, this woman was clearly of no ordinary birth, with curves in all the right places, the kind that could tempt men into a blissful oblivion. “How is it?” Ran Yan covered with the blanket again, then turned to ask Qing Dai, who was still kneeling on the ground. “Willing, of course, I’m willing!” Qing Dai was like a drowning person clutching at anything, not caring whether it was a log or a straw. “With such a severe condition, can she truly be saved?” Yan Nian too was eager to know the extent of Ran Yan’s medical skills, as she had also developed many rashes on her body recently. Seeing Zi Xu like this, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy. “Those with this disease in its mild form ‘diminish the prime essence, break the prime energy, and harm the prime spirit,’ leading to physical and mental exhaustion. In severe cases, eyebrows fall out, the bridge of the nose collapses, sores develop on the skin like scabies, threatening one’s life,” Ran Yan spoke while examining the bumps on Zi Xu’s body, “Although some parts are festering, it doesn’t look too late.” After the examination, Ran Yan stood up, her gaze falling on Yan Nian’s arm, adding, “Your condition is much better.” Ran Yan said that Miss Yan’s condition had significantly improved, and she wasn’t just referring to the illness being less severe. Through the recent events, Ran Yan could almost determine that Miss Yan was probably someone like a madam, not quite a washed-up courtesan, but she had a group of even more delicate prostitutes under her. Thus, she was not required to entertain guests. Contracting this disease nearly eliminated any possibility of a cure, but as long as the medicine was used correctly and she kept herself chaste, there essentially would be no danger to her life. Ran Yan pondered for a moment, then said, “Wan Lu, come out.” From Miss Yan’s behavior, Ran Yan could tell she was a person with delicate thoughts and very cautious. Such a person would not readily trust a stranger’s empty words without holding some leverage over them. So Ran Yan decided to give her peace of mind. Moreover, Ran Yan had seen enough stories in books and on television about brothels forcing respectable women into prostitution, letting Miss Yan know that she wasn’t of ordinary status also provided some measure of security. Wan Lu scurried to Ran Yan’s side and, like a hen protecting her chick, shielded her, her eyes reddening as she said, “Wife, you are being too wilful.” Just now, after Ran Yan’s intimidation and coercion, she ordered Wan Lu not to come out. While hidden behind the wall, Wan Lu watched her mistress carry herself with an extraordinary presence, facing a group of prostitutes and seven or eight burly men without a trace of panic, even confidently claiming to be able to cure the prostitute’s serious illness. Wan Lu was simultaneously amazed and deeply worried. After struggling with herself for a long time, just as she thought of what Miss Xing had taught her and was about to rush out, Ran Yan called her out. “If you wish to know my identity, you only need to look into the Zhou Family estate,” Ran Yan did this to put Miss Yan at ease, for the monk may run away, but the temple can’t run with him. Upon seeing Ran Yan’s “sincerity,” Miss Yan suddenly smiled. She was afraid of death but more afraid of ending up like Zi Xu before dying, “If that’s the case, then please, Divine Doctor, proceed to examine and treat me.” “I can do that, but first, I must make it clear that this disease cannot be completely cured. Should you have intercourse with a man again, not only is it likely to recur, but it can also be transmitted to the man. Furthermore, this disease can be inherited by children, so you cannot have them,” Ran Yan said seriously. Miss Yan let out a self-mocking laugh, “We are all lowly born, any child we bear will be a lowly servant as well. Why should we bring another into the world to suffer? I understand the two points you’ve made; please, this way.” Ran Yan nodded and followed the procession of people. After turning a couple of corners, they saw a courtyard gate with two red lanterns hanging in front. The lanterns were inscribed with three calligraphed characters: Embroidery Pavilion. Ran Yan had never studied the ancient brothels, but felt that since it was a brothel, it should be built in a place with lots of foot traffic. Why was it so quiet? “This is the back entrance,” Miss Yan seemed to understand the doubt in Ran Yan’s mind and offered an explanation. Ran Yan responded faintly and followed her into the courtyard. As soon as the back door opened, faint sounds of music and noise could be heard, not very clear, indicating the considerable size of the Embroidery Pavilion. The courtyard was lush with trees and flowers, with doors and windows peeking through the foliage, corridors winding, pavilions scattered about. Occasionally, through the carved walls, one could glimpse the beautiful scenery of the inner courtyard. The occasional murmuring noise from afar brought out the quietness of the backyard, creating a sense of “the cicadas cry deeper in the silent woods.” It was also Wan Lu’s first time in such a place, curious yet nervous, holding Ran Yan’s hand with a slight sweat. Passing through a corridor veiled by green vines, they saw a main hall. In front of the hall, two maids clad in chest-high flowing flower dresses saw Miss Yan approaching, bowed slightly, and parted the bamboo curtain at the main entrance. “Mama!” S~eaʀᴄh the ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. As Ran Yan was halfway through her step, she saw a woman dressed in disarray running over in a panic, her breasts nearly exposed as they bounced with her movement. Seeing Miss Yan, tears suddenly streamed down the woman’s face, “Mama, someone’s dead!”